Sunday, February 28, 2016

Two of TLC’s and my
all-time favourite shows were/are Friends and Designing Women. In our humble opinions? Both BRILLIANT. We looked
forward to every single episode. For years. We put many on VHS tapes—which are
still over in our Barn loft. We bought the boxed DVD video set of all of the Friends’ seasons. (If
there are DVDs for Designing Women —I’ve not seen them yet. I will own them!) When we find episodes on our televisions? We watch them with sheer excitement. They never ever EVER get old.

So here’s what I’m going to confess, Y’all:

TLC is Monica. 1000%.
Obsessive-Compulsive about so many things. Pretty. Witty. Charming. And a great cook!
(TLC would never allow me to call her a Chef—although I’m not kidding Y’all—she
could/should have a cooking show. Seriously.)

Little Leighton (LL)? She
is 1000% Suzanne Sugarbaker. Beautiful. Funny. (Although LL has no clue she’s
quite the comedienne.) A teensy-weensy-itty-bitty bit MANIPULATIVE. (Is this because LL is a
toddler? Or is this going to be her personality? We shiver at the possibility
this character trait is permanent. Yikes.)

There was an episode of Designing
Women where Julia and Suzanne’s brother’s daughters came to Atlanta to visit their aunts. Julie and Suzanne hadn’t
seen them for several years. When they arrived at Julia’s home—from the
airport—Suzanne, who had picked them up, was carrying the younger niece’s
luggage. The niece told her she was sorry she couldn’t carry her own luggage
but she’d pinched a nerve in her back on the long flight. Suzanne replied that
it was okay. She usually had a bad back. She’d not mentioned it fast enough!

When LL doesn’t want to do
something? She suddenly can’t walk. She’s too tired. A couple of weeks ago,
while coloring, TLC asked her to help put her colors and books up. She told TLC
she couldn’t. (With lots o’ dramatic flair.) Her fingers were “too tired and
sore.” She’s 3 ½ years old, Folks. Sigh.

Our Two Sweet Peas came to
see us this past Wednesday afternoon. TLC had a cut and color Thursday morn
with Kit. She’d planned to go home on Saturday morning. Thursday night—actually
Friday at 2:00
a.m.—TLC woke me up to say
she was really, REALLY sick. I won’t go into all of her symptoms. Trust me when
I share she was BBAAADDDD sick. She didn’t think she was in labor. However, I
was beyond petrified she could be. She was two hours from her doctor and
hospital. We are twenty minutes from our hospital—if we needed to take her to
the ER. AND—I knew My Sweet Hubby (MSH) would have to cart her
there—as I’d need to care for LL. All of our answer options seemed frightening.
“I don’t know nothin’ about birthin’ no babies.” That kept going through my
mind.

It was a rough almost 36
hours at our country casa. TLC received an email, late Friday afternoon, from LL’s pre-school telling the parents there was
a bad (DUH.) bug going around. Lots of teachers and kids had been hit. They’d
be disinfecting the school over the weekend. TLC’s precious neighbor—whose two
daughters go to the same school (she was actually the person who had
recommended this amazing school when TLC et al had moved to their new house)—had posted
on FB Friday afternoon they’d all been extremely ill. MSH had felt bad
Wednesday (before TLC and LL arrived) and Thursday. (He keeps saying he must
have gotten it from TLC. Timeline, MSH. Timeline. If anything, you gave it to
TLC. Except you probably didn’t. It seems to be in many areas of Texas, at this point.)

Thank You, Lord God
Almighty, LL and I (hopefully) didn’t get the bug. HOPEFULLY. We played and
played and played.

TLC and LL stayed last
night and left this morning for home. I’m happy HAPPY that, in the event TLC
does actually go into an early labor, she’s now close to her medical peeps. Whew!

(I’ve got a few pictures
to post, soon, of LL’s stay with Grammy and Pa-Pa. I’ll try not to be too
obnoxious. Promise. Humour me.)

I’ll close with the prayer
that each of Y’all have had a GLORIOUS weekend—full of good
health (not a “wicked” bug—this is what My Dear Friend Drew called it as she,
also, was sick recently for two long days with something evil) and happiness!

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Little Leighton (LL aka
Biscuit) gets more grownup each time I see her. Makes me proud. Makes me sad.
She constantly amazes me. Last week, as I visited her at her casa, and as we
read our books before bed, she told me: “I literally couldn’t believe that, Grammy!”
Except she pronounced “literally” like this: liter-a-we. (She can say “Ls”
now—but she has to be reminded to do this. Using a “W” still comes more
naturally to her...)

When I realized what word
she was using (it took me a teensy bit), I asked: “Do you know what that word means,
Biscuit?” She looked at me for a few seconds, giggled and changed the subject.
She used it properly—so I suspect she has some idea when and how to use it. She’ll
be four years old in July!

During her last visit to
our country home (the day after we visited Fossil Rim), she asked if we could
play “Hopscotch” out on the driveway. I’d drawn a hopscotch “court” for her a few
months ago and tried to explain it to her. Trust me, This Old Gal can NOT hop.
Under no circumstances can I hop. Or skip. Period. However, I gave her
the basic idea of how to do it. We hadn’t talked about it since then.

As I began drawing,
Biscuit, looking hopeful, asked: “Can I help you do that, Grammy?” “Sure,” I
replied, enthusiastically! This first picture shows how she drew the top part
of the Hopscotch court—in a different place! Bless her precious, PRECIOUS heart.
I had no intention of telling her she’d done it wrong.

Once she started “hopping
(second picture),” she simply skipped/jumped over to the right! No big deal. No
problemo. Easy/Peasy for Princess Biscuit. She may be a child that doesn’t
always intend to follow everyone else’s “rules.” Her Mama often wanted to make up her
own—so I’m not too terribly surprised. Winky. Wink.

BTW: My Sweet Hubby (MSH) was outside with us during
the Hopscotch Event. He shared with me what he remembered the “rules” to be.
They were nothing like my recollection. Not a smidge. I’ll be Googling soon to see if either one of us was even
remotely close to actually explaining it to LL accurately!

LL, TLC and Baby Elle
will be here manana for two to three nights. (Time for Kit to do TLC’s cut and color.
Yippee!) I have a feeling we’ll be drawing a new Hopscotch court—weather
permitting…

Sunday, February 21, 2016

For Valentine's Day this year, we gave Little Leighton a book called "Peppa Pig and the I Love You Game." It's cute. Peppa and her family list all the people and things they love. So, tonight, I decided I would quickly list (in no particular order) a few things I'm currently loving. Yes, most of these are food. I'm a few days shy of nine months' pregnant, so my world revolves around food.

I love...

Those DAMN Cadbury Mini Eggs. I cannot keep them in my house any longer.

Thin Mints. I ate an entire box and a half by myself. I have no shame.

Bacon, Egg and Cheese Biscuits. I still love them. So much. So much.

Caffe Verona whole bean coffee from Starbucks. I gave My Hubby a bag for Valentine's Day, but I've been benefiting every morning since!

Cara Cara Oranges. These are delightful and healthy. Go, me!

Discovering how to delete music off my phone--finally. It was utterly ridiculous that we were forced to have that U2 album, Apple! (Not that I don't like a lot of their tunes.)

A packed hospital bag for Baby Elle. It's getting real--really fast. The car seat will be installed later this week and I hope to have my bag packed by next weekend. I'm trying to put it out into the Universe that the baby should (SAFELY) come a smidge early.

Thursday, February 18, 2016

Guess what I just did?
Filled up my med box. Dang. The past seven days are gone. Over. Done. Sheesh.

Today was one of those
Thursdays (or any-day-of-the-week-actually) when nothing much went as planned.
I must say I am typically pretty flexible—much MUCH more than My Sweet Hubby
(MSH) and, possibly, TLC. Now I’m not saying I’m always sweet and happy and
perky when a curve ball is thrown at me and my plans go awry. No. I can be
quite sassy. Feisty. Cranky. During those times of unexpected interruptions. But
today, when things went South after 1:00 p.m., I did my best to adjust.

I had a doctor’s
appointment this morning. I’m not sick. This was a follow-up for one medical
issue and my need to discuss another with the woman who has been my family
physician for about twelve years. I love her. I truly do. We had a good session
and she helped me figure out a plan. (I like being mysterious—occasionally.
Trust me—it’s not anything super serious.)

Then I ran a couple of
quick errands before meeting Sunny at the Hellmart parking lot. We’d planned to
take my car and could go to a Sonic
for a fast lunch. We do Sonic maybe
once every three or four years! She wanted one of my “wines”—Coke Zero with
vanilla. I cherish her for that. And for many millions of other things.

After our small burger,
small tots and VCZs, we went to a Trunk Show at a CUTE little local Boutique
(and beauty salon—in the back!). The owner of this charming shop is a friend of
Sunny’s and mine. She is a HOOT.

A complete SURPRISE awaited me! The Trunk Show lady helped her Mama babysit TLC
thirty years ago! I didn’t recognize Cookie—because it’s probably been that
long since I’ve seen her. She didn’t recognize me, either. But once we knew who
the other was? FUN MEMORIES. Fun stories. Lots of catching up. I
couldn’t believe she’s about to be a grandmother, too! She looked entirely too
young—and MARVELOUS. Her jewelry and trinkets? FABULOUS.

While I was in town, MSH
was dealing with an on-going issue at our casa by phone and emails. He took a
quick break to have lunch with two of his friends—but called me—at about 12:45—to come home ASAP. We needed to work together on
the issue. (Yes. I realize this is another mystery. Hopefully I can share it
with Y’all someday. Right now? It’s stressful. It’s wrong. It’s unfair. It’s
often been what I call a “SPECIAL HELL.” Suffice it to say I’ve prayed
constantly for the past two years about this and still haven’t figured out when
a solution is going to come. Sigh. As TLC says: It is what it is.)

MSH and I went BACK to
town mid-afternoon. To vote. We’re grateful to be Americans and to have the
privilege of expressing our feelings, values and opinions at the polls. PLUS—the process—in a small town? Downright simple. It
took us about seven minutes to get out of my car at the Courthouse, vote, and
head home.

Once we got back, we had
more typing/emailing to do. I had laundry. Etc. I sat down an hour ago and
watched Grey’s Anatomy. I haven’t missed a season or show yet and hope
I never have to. Fortunately, I needed a satisfying cry—so that worked out for
moi.

Tomorrow I go for a
one-night visit to TLC and Biscuit’s casa. TLC’s Hubby will be out of town and
I’m the Babysitter. (I just saw them Monday and Tuesday—yet I cannot wait to
see them again.)

I send my love to Y'all and hope you each have a Fantastic Friday and Wonderful Weekend!

Monday, February 15, 2016

This
past Saturday, My Sweet Hubby (MSH) and I spent a few hours doing some
shopping/ratkilling/dining in Weatherford. Lunch at a fun new (new to us)
restaurant calledVintage. Charming and Delish! Our last stop before Vintage
was to a Lowe’s to buy a couple of
pots for OurHope Tree. We felt like it was time to get it out of the styrofoam
cup and into something larger.

We
bought two pots—this one—and one (same pot, color, etc.) a little larger. For
future expansion! We also bought some new potting soil. (Although, ironically,
MSH used very, VERY old potting soil he’d found over at our Barn—not dirt from
our garden as I had previously reported—and this little tree seemed to like it
just fine. Winky. Wink.)

Now
begins our Second Stage Watch!
Please send good thoughts and prayers our way—from wherever in the World you
are—to our Sweet Hope Tree in North Central Texas! I need this little miracle
tree to keep growing. I truly do.

Friday, February 12, 2016

Last week, My Sweet Hubby
(MSH) and I were beyond lucky—we got to keep Little Leighton (aka LL aka
Biscuit) for THREE nights! We picked her up from TLC in Colleyville last
Thursday morn and took her back—to the same meeting place—on Sunday.

We’d decided that, weather
permitting, we’d take Biscuit to Fossil Rim WildlifeCenter
on Friday morning. Y’all should check out this link: www.fossilrim.org. This place is AMAZING/AWESOME/MARVELOUS.
Ourfamilyhas had the good fortune to visit
it many, many times in the past thirty years, as it’s less than an hour from
our casa. (And…it’s a BEAUTIFUL drive.)

TLC gave us permission to
let Biscuit get out of her carseat only
as we traveled through the park. (The speed limit is 15 mph and everyone is
always (well, 98.8% of the time!) respectful of and to the vehicles in front or
behind him. Actually, we only saw five other cars/trucks the entire time we
were there.)

Biscuit, like most
toddlers (and, for that matter, adults!), LOVES animals. She’s been to a zoo once—almost two years ago. She doesn’t
have much of a memory of it. Fossil Rim is a different (I know there are many, many drive-thru wildlife parks in Texas and around the U. S., but I believe Fossil Rim is
exta-special!) and truly special experience. IMHO.

When MSH paid our entry
fee (I will admit the entry fees might be considered a bit pricey—but completely and totally
worth every penny you spend. Plus, I found a coupon on-line that got LL in for
free with an adult ticket purchased.) You’re allowed to buy one sack of feed.
It’s $10. I believe it’s worth it—because a lot of the animals will come right
up to your vehicle and eat out of your hands or right there at your car/truck.

The lady that sold MSH the
entry tickets said she wasn’t sure we’d see the giraffes. Because it was a bit
nippy that morning. (It was only going to reach a high in the mid-50s that
day—it never got to 50 degrees the entire time we were there.)

When you first head out on
the tour, you see several HUGEbuffalos. I cannot emphasize HUGE enough. Then, as you head into the park, you
see a lot of deer, gazelles, and emus. I don’t know how many species of animals
are represented—they give you a brochure that has all of them and I sent it
home with Biscuit. Seems like it’s somewhere around 25.

Many years ago, when Fossil
Rim first opened and we took our kids every other to every three years,
the ostriches were VERY aggressive.
They wanted food. They’d come right up to your vehicle. If your windows weren’t
down? They’d peck at them. They’d stick their heads into your vehicle in a
scary, fast way! This trip, we only saw one ostrich. Not sure why—unless
they’ve had some issues with these birds’ behaviors and they’ve culled the
numbers down.

We were halfway through
the first part of the drive (you reach the Overlook, Café, Gift Shop and
Children’s Petting Area at the midpoint of the tour) when we saw our first
giraffe!

When that vehicle was ready
to move on, he confidently came over to our truck! He was sooo sweet and
friendly—not one ounce worried about sticking his big head into the truck to
get his food from my hands. Biscuit backed up as far as she could to the other
side and watched with utter and complete awe. (Eventually, we saw six giraffes.)

We got tickled at this
little deer. He/she was quite curious! Many of the animals have no fear. None.
Zilch. Zero.

At the midpoint, we went
into the gift shop and treated Biscuit to a little giraffe we named “Gertie”
and a t-shirt. I had packed a gluten-free lunch for her, which we ate in the
Café. (They had signs everywhere saying no outside food or drink—but I’d called
and told them she had to eat what I fixed her because she has Celiac. They were
tres nice about that. We did buy some of their food and it was good.)

It was really too windy
and cold to go over to the Children’s Petting Place—so we proceeded on to the rest of the tour.
Biscuit got to see several zebras—which she LOVES—even though they were too
lazy and comfy to get up and come over to get our food…

six cheetahs (my pictures
of them didn’t turn out great because they weren’t moving around in their
large, fenced area—all six were enjoying the warmth of the sun—some were behind
big rocks)—

some huge rams (oops...no
pictures of those)—and

two rhinos!

It was a memorable trip
all three of us thoroughly enjoyed...

If you live anywhere
around the Dallas/Ft. Worth Metroplex—or plan to make a trip to this area of Texas at some point in your future—I highly recommend a
visit to Fossil Rim! They have a lodge—cabins—and many different
options/programs you can enjoy. I’ve had a goal—for at least three years—of
spending a couple of nights in one of the cabins and going on behind-the-scenes
tours of the ranch! Bucket List stuff. (Two more places I have on my Bucket
List: The Wildcatter Ranch in Graham, Texas, and the Doves’
Rest Cabins on the edge of Big Bend in far southwest Texas. Sigh.)

Tuesday, February 9, 2016

A couple of weeks before
this past Christmas Day, My Sweet Hubby (MSH) and I were leaving TLC’s casa one
afternoon and decided to stop at Market Street for a few grocery
items. MSH LOVES this grocery store. With all of his heart. (We don’t have
one in our little country town—or Granbury—or Weatherford—or even Ft.Worth.) As we parked close to a tree, he noticed an
acorn/pod on the ground near his truck. He reached down to pick it up while
saying to me: Wouldn’t it be cool if we got this pod to take root? Always the
one to enjoy a good experiment, I agreed it would be interesting! So he did.
Pick it up.

When we got home that
afternoon, MSH found a Styrofoam cup, punched a small hole in the bottom, and
placed the pod in the cup, with dirt from our garden. He then put the cup into
a coffee mug and set it in a corner of our kitchen. He thought it should be a
dark-ish corner. We gave it water every few days—and began our quest to see growth.

At the beginning of this
New Year, we moved the cup to our kitchen island. At this location, it’d get
some filtered light. We waited. Nothing happened. In the middle of January, I
moved it to my utility room window. Here it would get the late afternoon sun.
Not too much, as we have an arbor on our back patio that prevents the hot, hot
sunlight from getting to the back of our casa. We waited.

Three weeks ago, as
I took the cup down from the windowsill to give it some water, I prayed this
prayer:

Dear God Almighty,

We could use a sign of optimism.
Hope. We could use an event that would restore our faith in small miracles. And
I would love for my Nana Leighton to signal me she’s here—with me. That she
knows my struggles and will help me to be strong. PLEASE let this pod/acorn
grow in this cup. PLEASE.

In Your Son Jesus’
Name, I pray.

Amen.

On January 30th,
I was taking a load of laundry out of the washer and putting it in the dryer
when I realized the cup might need a bit of water. MSH had talked about the
fact that our experiment was, more than likely, not going to work. As I picked
the cup up, my heart SOARED with complete and utter JOY.
There was a sprout! A precious, sweet, teeny, tiny sprout!

I went running into the
kitchen to show MSH. He beamed from ear to ear! I then told him about my
prayer. We almost cried.

Here are two more pictures
of our future tree. The third I took late this morning. Now we’re not exactly sure
what to do! We have decided we’ll give this little “Hope” tree to Little
Leighton and Baby Elle. To plant in their backyard. Since it is from their
“home” town.

I challenge each of Y’all
to plan an experiment in the next few weeks! Attempt to grow something
marvelous. Or see if you can encourage someone without them knowing who is behind
the gesture. Have faith. Ask for God’s help. BELIEVE.

I pray Y’all have a
FANTASTIC week, wherever in the World you are…

ta-ta for now…

p.s.: My Nana Leighton was a very gifted Gardener.
She loved to grow things and sincerely possessed a “Green Thumb.” Pansies were
her most favourite flower. She also had several African violets she was nurturing
at all times. Then there’s her granddaughter—moi. My thumb? Hmmm. It’s kind of
pale green. I never cared about gardening until I hit my 40s. I have some
specialties I can grow—I guess. Periwinkles. Begonias. Ivy. Caladiums. I
cannot, for the life of me, grow a petunia. No how/no way. Because I’ve lost
money—over the years—when I try out new flowers, I’ve become unadventurous in my
plantings. Also, the EVIL armadillos we have here in Texas and,
specifically, at our casa, prevent me from planting flowers in the actual
ground of our garden. I have to keep my efforts contained in pots. I
positively, absolutely believe My Nana smiled and maybe got a teeny tear in her eye when
she saw I’d discovered the new sprout. I believe she’s My Guardian Angel and I
hope she’s proud of me. I couldn’t have survived what was my childhood and teen
years without My Nana. Truly.

Saturday, February 6, 2016

So, bless ELC's heart. I sincerely have the most amazing Mom. She truly has taken care of our blog virtually by herself for MONTHS. This pregnancy has been a doozy. I probably would have said that about my pregnancy with Little Leighton--but this time: wow. I seriously mean it. I have several more weeks to go and cannot imagine how this little baby has any more room in there to grow. I'm plagued with restless sleep, crazy muscle aches and general discomfort. I moan and groan. I literally caught Little Leighton (LL) doing the same things the other day when she was getting down from our couch. Oops. My pain tolerance is what one might consider insanely low. When I was in labor with LL, and not even dilated, my famous line, while impatiently waiting for the epidural to kick in, was: "I. Am. Over. This." (Said not so kindly.)

I feel more prepared this time. At least, I think I do. The nursery is finished, and I couldn't be more pleased with the little "gallery wall" I assembled over her changing table:

Several of the pictures were used in LL's nursery (and before that--MY nursery!). ELC and I found the "Though She Be But Little" picture at a cute store downtown, as well as the "Sid Dickens" block of the sweet baby. I ordered the embroidery hoop from Etsy (what did we do before Etsy? and Pinterest?). I've washed and washed and soaked, in Oxiclean (no matter how clean the tiny clothes from your first baby are when you pack them away, they inevitably yellow; however, Oxiclean is magic!), and washed again all the jammies, socks, blankets and burp cloths. Really--the only jobs I have left to do are packing our hospital bags, installing the monitor and sanitizing bottles, pump parts and pacifiers. I'm in good shape, right? I do have a sleep book I should be reading when I'm not sleeping. Sheesh.

We are all getting genuinely excited for Baby Elle's arrival! And maybe a smidge nervous. LL keeps asking what we think she'll look like. I can't wait to see. I'm betting we might have a LL twin.

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

I am
with you and for you. You face nothing alone—nothing. When you feel
anxious, know that you are focusing on the visible world and leaving Me out of
the picture. The remedy is simple: Fix your eyes not on what is seen, but on
what is unseen. Verbalize your trust in Me, the Living One who sees you
always. I will get you safely through this day and all your days. But
you can find Me only in the present. Each day is a precious gift from My Father.
How ridiculous to grasp for future gifts when today’s is set before you!
Receive today’s gift gratefully, unwrapping it tenderly and delving into its
depths. As you savor this gift, you find Me.

Romans 8:31; 2 Corinthians 4:18;
Genesis 16:13-14 AMP

TLC and
I needed this today. We need Jesus Christ Our Savior every day. Sometimes we’re,
sadly, guilty of putting him on the back burner. On those (too many) days, we
try to remind each other to pick up our Jesus
Calling and read it. Think about it. Feel it. Trust Him.